Ex-Principal of Brooklyn Jewish School Convicted on Sex Abuse

The former principal of a Jewish high school in Brooklyn was convicted on 75 counts of sexual abuse against three boys.

Emanuel Yegutkin, 33, was convicted Monday on all charges of sexual abuse stemming from his relationship with three boys between 1996 and 2005, including one who was 7 years old at the time.

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Yegutkin faces up to 25 years in prison for the top charge of sexual conduct against a child in the first degree. He will be sentenced on Dec. 17.

Until his arrest in early 2009, Yegutkin served as the principal of Elite High School, a private school in the Bensonhurst neighborhood comprised largely of Russian-American students. Two of the victims were brothers; none were students at the school.

“This violent sexual predator faces the remainder of his life behind bars,” Brooklyn District Attorney Charles Hynes said. “This should serve as a clear message that those who would sexually abuse children in this county will be punished severely.”

Earlier this year, Hynes came under fire for his handling of prosecuting sex offenders in the haredi Orthodox community.

Prior to his arrest, Yegutkin also worked as a lifeguard at Oorah summer camp in upstate New York and as a volunteer paramedic for the Flatbush Hatzoloh ambulance service.

Malkah Fleisher is a graduate of Cardozo Law School in New York City. She is an editor/staff writer at JewishPress.com and co-hosts a weekly Israeli FM radio show. Malkah lives with her husband and two children on the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem.